


Sonder

by GuajolotA



Series: A Song of Cool Cats and Hot Fuzz [1]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Gen, Hints of Jamie/Brienne
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-03
Updated: 2013-07-30
Packaged: 2017-12-04 04:21:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/706480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GuajolotA/pseuds/GuajolotA
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>n. the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.</p><p>Or not.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Girls

**Author's Note:**

> This is also in Ff.net
> 
> I don't own the characters.

 

Ygritte

It was a busy night for The Fist; the pub was crowded with students celebrating the end of midterms. Winter in the North was cruel but if you really wanted to be at the Wall—how some of the students liked to call the prestigious University—you had to bare it. But no one wanted to bare it outside, actually facing the cold, so, everybody generally ended up in The Fist, eating and drinking and whatnot.

Ygritte had managed to get into the Wall thanks to the Mance Ryder scholarship. Mance Ryder used to be a professor at the university until he had managed to make a fortune. After that he decided to start his own scholarships program, following his beliefs that education was not only for the rich. He had dedicated his life to giving scholarships to 'brilliant minds and entrepreneur spirits' as he called them; Ygritte being one of them.

The table of the crows blew up in laughter and Ygritte turned her attention towards them from her place in the bar.

Jon Snow was sitting in what was now his usual table with the rest of the crows. The Crows weren't kids with scholarship like Mance's. Crows was the name for all the kids that had got into the school with help and favours from higher ups. Those were crows. Crows like Jon Snow.

It was a well known fact that Jon's father was a school's benefactor and that his uncle was chief of some department: foreign relations or something similar.

Of course Jon had denied it, he had claimed that he had gotten into the University by his own merits; Ygritte knew he was just a crow.

Jon looked towards Ygritte's direction, probably feeling her gaze on him. Ygritte winked at him with a joking gesture, and the crow turned red as her hair. Ygritte couldn't help laughing at his embarrassment. This had been a little game she had been playing since the day they had met; flirting with Jon in order to embarrass him. For someone so handsome, the black-haired was ridiculously shy with girls.

'Like a Princess from a Fairytale, like Snow White,' someone had said, and since then he had never gotten rid of the name 'Jon Snow'.

Ygritte's attention was caught when she saw Snow smiling to his cell phone, walking outside the pub to answer.

'Uuuh, so Jon Snow has a girlfriend?' she wondered, without knowing why the thought made her throat clench a little.

But what she saw made her feel a little bit worse.

She saw Jon turn pale, and him opening his mouth, shocked, and for a second, Ygritte thought he was going to drop his phone.

"I'll be back," commented Ygritte as she stood up, leaving her place in the bar and walking outside, joining Jon "Hey, Lord Snow, everything all right?" asked Ygritte trying to lighten the atmosphere and Jon turned to her, still looking at his phone and with tears in his eyes, or so it seemed.

"My father died," and then he left his arm drop and stared at the floor.

Fifteen minutes later, Ygritte was opening the door of an apartment that was not hers.

"Wow! Still, boy," exclaimed as she saw the huge white dog was sniffing her. "Is this yours?" she asked

"Ghost," started Jon but left the phrase unfinished, and instead he let himself drop on the couch, soon followed by his dog, "I can't believe he is dead"

Ygritte sighed. She wasn't good with these kind of things: comforting people. Much less in something like that; her parents had died years ago and she had grown up with the idea that dying wasn't so bad.

We all have to die, but first we live, she had recited to herself over and over as she grew up until she actually believed it.

"I'll help you gather your things," and quick as a deer she entered to his room, took a bag and packed some shirts, a pair of jeans, socks, and whatever he was going to need. "We can still get a train," she muttered without noticing that she had just invited herself  to the funeral.

As she closed the bag and walked towards the bedroom door she spotted some pictures on the night stand that caught her attention. Snow with a girl that looked like him, each holding a puppy, and she recognized Ghost. In the next one Snow was with two boys his age, the three of them laughing. There was one that looked like his birthday with the boys, the girl and two kids, there was also a redhead girl smiling. The last picture was Jon with his father in what looked like his high school graduation.

'He looked just like him' Ygritte took the bag and walked out of the room. She was relieved to see that Jon had stood up and had now Ghost on a leash.

"Time to go," sentenced Ygritte throwing Jon his bag, who caught it awkwardly "We can still get a train, is not that late.

"...what?" was all that Jon could say. He looked at her confused "You are... I thought you would just... I mean, weren't you just going to drop me by the station?"

"You know nothing, Jon Snow."

.x.

It was a calm trip, but Jon seemed nervous for Ghost

"I don't think he likes this"

"Then you know nothing, Jon Snow," answered Ygritte smiling and she reached her hand to scratch the dog's head, which was resting on her legs.

"You know? I saw the picture of him as a puppy," Ygritte commented, trying to start small talk, "It was a really cute dog."

"Yes, we never thought they were going to grow this much"

"They?"

"Him and his litter, we found them, me and my brothers—Bran and Robb— and Theon, a family friend. I don't even know how we managed to convince my father to let us keep them. One for each kid, but Lady—my sister's dog—died... a car hit her a year ago."

"The girl with the puppy?"

"No, I think you are referring to Arya; my little sister. Sansa is older than her, she is a redhead"

"So... You, Arya, Sansa and Bran"

"Who is younger than Arya"

"So... Robb is the little kid?" she guessed "The youngest?"

"No, that's Rickon; Robb is almost my age..."

Ygritte tried to recall the pictures... the one with the three boys; she had thought that they were his friends but one looked like Sansa, Ygritte supposed he was Robb, and the other Theon.

"Wow, your parents didn't have a TV, right? Six kids?" Jon shifted, obviously uncomfortable

"Well, five kids. I am" he struggled with the words "I am just their half brother" he muttered, avoiding looking at her.

Congratulations Ygritte, you just put your foot in your mouth

"My mom got pregnant but never told my father... who met Catelyn and married her right away." The words were coming out slowly, and in almost a mutter, but Ygritte didn't interrupt, "she got pregnant with Robb almost immediately, but when I turned two my mother got sick and contacted my father, he took me in. Then she died... My mom. Honestly I don't even remember her"

Ygritte was slightly shocked. First, because she was sure that those were not things he told everyone and second because...

"And here I thought you had such a perfect life"

In other circumstances Jon would have laughed.

Jon told her more about his family; how Brann loved to climb trees until he broke his leg, how Arya and Sansa fought. He told her about Theon, who wasn't his brother but used to live with them, and Robb and his long time girlfriend.

He never mentioned Catelyn, who seemed to have a strangled relation with him.

And she didn't dare to ask about his father.

.x.

They arrived to the station and took a taxi to the Stark's house who lived north of the city, almost outside the city

In other circumstances Ygritte would have admired the houses—mansions—or the surroundings that were almost forests but she could not rip her eyes off of Jon who shifted nervously in his seat.

The moment they got out of the cab, Ghost ran towards the door that opened without the necessity of knocking.

A blue eyed man received them

"Robb" greeted Jon, "How is everyone doing?" asked as they entered the house; Ygritte saw a grey dog even bigger than ghost, wrestling with the white dog.

"Arya and Sansa cried to sleep, Rickon cried a little and then locked himself in his room and Bran has barely been seen..."

"Robb" called a voice from what Ygritte supposed was the kitchen "Who is there?"

An older woman with blue eyes and long copper hair walked towards them and Jon stiffened; she was Catelyn.

"I... am so sorry" said Jon, fighting to find the words and look at her at the same time. Catelyn got near him, "I am so sorry for your loss" said Jon with a broken voice

Catelyn placed a hand on his shoulder very softly

"You look so much like him," she answered "like your father"

Jon held her hand on his shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. With that, Robb thought it was better leaving them alone, and Ygritte didn't know what to do.

Thank the Gods, Ghost caught Jon's attention.

"Oh, I am sorry, what's your name?" asked politely Catelyn

"I am Ygritte, Ygritte Wilde. I am so sorry for your loss"

"Ygritte is my... classmate" Jon said, unsure on what to call her.

"Oh... I see" Catelyn smiled softly at her "I didn't expect any visitors, so I don't have a room for you..."

"Oh, please don't bother" started Ygritte

"Mrs Catelyn it isn't necessary really"

"I could go to a hotel"

"She can sleep in my room" stated Jon then, quickly, shut his mouth.

Catelyn simply raised her perfect brow.

Sansa

The campus was everything she had dreamed of and more

Sansa Stark was finishing her touristic visit to King's Landing University; that even if it was on the other side of the city was the perfect University in Sansa's eyes

Well, almost perfect.

Her ex-boyfriend, Joffrey Baratheon was studying there.

Sansa had decided to ignore that small detail; at the end of the day he was in a different major and one year above her. She didn't have to see him, or that's what she thought

Sansa was walking besides a green area with tables for students to sit and eat when her cell phone started ringing. It was Robb;

"Oh God Robb, the campus is..." Sansa was already prepared to give her 'this School is so perfect it screams my name' speech when his voice cut her off.

"Sansa, you have to go to the hospital right now, Dad had an accident"

"...what?" for a moment Sansa didn't understand what her brother was saying

"He is not very well Sansa... They don't think he is going to make it"

Robb's voice sounded so scared and tense that while Sansa's brain hadn't yet finished processing the information, she understood it was something serious.

The next second she was kneeling in the ground and she could barely breathe

"Sansa?" the phone fell to the ground; Sansa's hands were shaking so badly she could not retrieve it.

"Damn it, Sansa, what is wrong with you?" a gruff voice asked, and she saw someone kneeling besides her and helping her retrieve her stuff and picking her phone "What the hell is...?" Sansa looked up and saw Sandor Cleagane; a friend of Joffrey's., Sandor hung up and looked at Sansa "Your father"

"I have to go to the hospital" Sansa said, her voice emotionless. She picked up her car keys and managed to stand up.

"You can't drive like this", do you even know in which hospital your father is?" Sandor scowled, grabbing her elbow and supporting her so she didn't fall again.

He pulled her as softly as he could and she followed blindly.

"I'll take you," he offered and Sansa responded with a nod.

Sandor was Joffrey's best friend, or so Sansa had thought at the beginning of her relationship with the blond jerk. Sandor had confessed that he was more of a bodyguard than a friend; his father worked for Joffrey's grandfather and 'one thing had led to another'.

At one point of her relationship with Joffrey, Sandor had gotten a job with Joffrey's uncle, Tyron Lannister, but even though he stayed close by. When Sansa finally managed to be dumped by Joffrey—since he didn't accept the fact that she had tried to dump him—and she stopped going out with that group of 'friends', Sansa still saw Sandor, especially since Tyron constantly needed to deliver something urgently to her father and he didn't trust it to his efficient but clumsy assistant.

Sansa liked Sandor in general, she couldn't call him her friend; but she was slightly fond of him.

If she could use her head she wouldn't understand why he was helping her, but she could only think of Robb's word "They don't think he is going to make it"

Sansa clutched at her phone and pressed it against her chest.

"Is he going to be fine?" she asked in a whisper

"I don't know, little bird, I really don't know"

Sansa knew that Sandor drove as fast as he could, probably even faster then what was legally stipulated but still, the trip felt like an eternity.

Sandor pulled in front of the hospital so Sansa got down the car running. She ran and asked for her father to the nurse in the front desk, then ran to wherever someone directed her, she ran like never, but still she knew she could not be fast enough.

She saw Arya first; she was sitting in the hallway, blank expression on her face but tears running down her cheeks. Then she saw her mother and Robb, she walked to them.

"...Mom?" she whispered and Robb only shook his head "No? No what?" she asked as she felt her lungs begging her for air "No what Robb? Where is dad?"

"Sansa he... he didn't make it"

"No, you are wrong, I... I saw him this morning, I saw him before I left the house... I saw him today" her voice was breaking and she felt something warm on her cheeks "I... I am going to find him, I am going to look for a doctor and find him and I will see him and us..." her voice cracked and she turned on her heels and started walking as fast as she could without breaking into a run.

She was sobbing. She was sobbing and she never noticed she had gotten out of the building until a hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"Sansa?"

Never Sandor's voice had been so soft, and Sansa turned towards him.

"I saw him this morning, I talked with him on the phone about school, he... he can't be gone"

Sandor guided her back in, where she sat with Arya, Bran and Rickon.

"I could take you home" offered Sandor after a while; her mother and older brother would be held on the hospital for paper work and arrangements for the funeral.

In a moment like this Sansa thought bitterly

Bran thanked the offer, and helped with Rickon, who had channelled all his sadness into anger.

Arya followed silently.

The trip on the car was silent and fast. Her siblings went out of the car and Sansa stayed in the front seat, alone with Sandor

"I don't want to go in"

"What?"

"...I..." Sansa took a deep breath to avoid her voice of cracking and continued "I know him... I know he is not going to be in there but..." she turned and looked at Sandor, directly in his eyes "but I can't help but feel that this is a nightmare, that I am going to get in there, and my father is going to be waiting for us in the table, commenting on  how the dinner got cold... how we kept him waiting..." she let out a shaky breath, and tried to calm down, "I don't want to go inside"

"I can wait"

Sansa nodded, avoiding his gaze and looked at her cell phone, which was in her hands

"I want him to call, I want him to call" she whispered Sandor didn't say anything; he just waited, and let her cry. She cried for what it felt like hours, and she wasn't sure but Sandor may have told her soothing words, and may have held her hand. He asked her to call him, if she wanted to talk, and Sansa thought that he only had said that to be polite. But since when did Sandor care about that?

She tried to sleep, but she could hear Rickon's cries, and Bran going out the window. When she heard a car pulling over, she smiled. Dad is home! She thought for a second, for just a second. She was so tired and for just a second she had forgotten what had happened earlier.

So, she grabbed her phone.

"Yeah?" ah low voiced answered on the other side of the line, "what's wrong?"

"I just can't believe he is gone"

Arya

Saying that Arya was the first one to wake up would be a lie; to wake up one had to go to sleep and she hadn't slept in the whole night, but as the sun shone in her room she had jumped out of bed. She took a glance at her hair, that lay on the floor. She had chopped her hair the night before; between the tears and pain. The moment she saw her reflection in the mirror, she knew Sansa was going to kill her.

Without thinking Arya dressed herself with a big hoodie that at some point had been Jon's and loose jeans. She took a hat and noticed that she almost looked like a boy.

Great this is as good as it gets, I guess.

She went out silently and started walking, not caring where she was going. She took a bus and went downtown, before she noticed where her subconscious was guiding her to the bus took a turn in a not so very friendly neighbourhood...

And she got down there.

"Look, the little kid got lost" said a blonde kid who was accompanied by a fat boy, both were her age or slightly older. She had been walking for 10 minutes now and was still very lost, "Is that why you are crying, baby?"

"Leave me alone"

"How brave, what are you going to do if I don't? Cry to your daddy?"

Her fist connected with the fat kid's face in what could only be a new record. The next second the blond had thrown himself at her, knocking her to the ground.

"What the hell is happening?!" a voice boomed and the blond stood up immediately.

"He hit me!" cried the fat boy, pointing with chubby fingers at Arya, who stayed on the floor.

"In what I bet was a well deserved punch, so fuck out before I make you!"Said the voice and Arya saw a shadow looming over her. A face came into view  "need a hand?" he offered. He had blue eyes and black hair and he looked Robb's age

"I don't need your help" she spat as she stood up"

"Whoa, sorry my lady" he said jokingly and she stared" "What?"

"I thought I really looked like a boy, they bought it"

"I am not half as stupid as they are" the boy laughed but Arya kept looking at him wearily, "Right... sorry about them; they are not usually such an assholes; I guess they just wanted to show off or something... thinking you were weak or something, but hey! Awesome punch! Hot Pie is probably never going to forget it!"

Arya smiled despise herself "thanks"

"A smile, much better" he smiled at her "I am Gendry"

"I am Ar... Arry"

"Arry?"

"Yes, why not?"

"You know it's obvious that that's a fake name, right?"

"That kid's name is Hot Pie!" Gendry chuckled

"To be honest, I don't know anyone who knows his real name" he confessed "So, what is a lady as you doing in this lowly neighbourhood?" he asked mockingly and Arya stiffened. She didn't knew why she had come here, she had just wanted to be there.

"Mall... I was going to the mall and... I got lost... I wanted to fix my hair," she lied, "there was an accident, with my hair"

"Which mall?" she shrugged "Anyway, I can assure you, you are pretty lost"

Arya bit her lip Well you got yourself into this one

"I took the wrong bus and when I realized it I was pretty far and... and I am out of money" she admitted

"...How were you going to pay for the haircut?"

"I didn't know I didn't have my wallet with me, stupid!"

Gendry laughed

"Well, aren't you something else? You shouldn't insult people who are bigger than you" he said trying not to smile

"Then I couldn't insult anyone, could I?"

Gendry laughed again

"Okay, that's true," he looked at his watch and sighed, "I know someone that can help you, if you want to get that haircut, she won't charge"

Arya bit her lip and finally accepted

"Thanks that would be nice"

"Are you going to tell me you name now?"

"No, I am still Arry"

Gendry took her to a small hostel, not even a block away from where they were. 'Acorn Hall' read on the door, and they were greeted by and older woman, who after hearing Arya's story cut her hair.

"I have to go back home" Arya sighed, Gendry had bought her breakfast and they had been chatting for a while.

"I'll take you home" he offered

"What? No, there's no necessity…"

"How do you plan to go back if you don't have any money?"

"I'll take a cab! I'll pay once I arrive home"

"Don't be silly. I'll take you on my motorcycle"

"My mom is going to have a heart attack" she muttered to herself but didn't made any attempt to change Gendry's mind.

They climbed on his motorcycle and Gendry told her to hold onto him. He turned in a corner in order to take the main road when Arya saw it. The place her subconscious had tried to guide her all along. A light post was slightly bent and there were tire marks but besides that, there was no other indication of what had happened the previous day.

Gendry must have felt her tense because he turned a little, just enough to glimpse at her.

"Everything alright?"

"There was an accident here"

"yes," Gendry answered even if Arya hadn't asked. "He is a good man, I hope he makes it" Arya held on him tighter

"You knew him?"

"Yeah, client of the garage I work in. Nice guy"

Arya tried to hid her face on his back and muttered "Take the King's Road, to the North"

Gendry didn't said anything else, and Arya would only instruct him where to go.

It was not  until they got to the very nice neighborhood in which Arya lived that Gendry talked again

"You were really lost, right?" he asked with a chuckle.

The front door banged open, and a stressed looking Sansa ran towards them.

"Arya!" she cried "Oh Gods, where were you? I told mom you didn't want breakfast and I think she bought it but you need to get ready now!" she grabbed her sister by the arm and started pulling her towards the house "Thanks to the Seven Heavens you have your hair done" but as soon as she spoke the words she stopped "What happened to your hair ?"

"I got a haircut, obviously"

"You look…" Sansa started doubted

"Nice" stepped in Gendry "I think you look nice," he said and smiled to Arya

"You look so grown up" finished Sansa, with a soft smile "Finally stopped looking like a nine year old" she turned to Gendry "Sorry, do we know each other?"

"Oh, no, sorry. I am Gendry," he greeted "your sister's friend"

Arya couldn't help to look at him with a raised brow Friend?

"Oh, I suppose you are coming to the funeral?" Sansa asked with a soft smile, but before Gendry answered Arya cut in.

"No, I already took too much of his time, he needs to go back to work" Arya said, finally pulling her wrist from her sister's grip, "right, Gen?" This time Gendry raised an eyebrow at her "Right Gendry?"

"Uh, yeah… I am not dressed to… funeral" he said awkwardly but Sansa smiled

"No problem, we still have some of Robb's jackets, I am sure you will fit in one" Sansa said as she placed herself in the middle of Arya and Gendry and started pushing them both to the house and Arya mouthed 'sorry' to him.

.x.

"So, Arry, care to fill me in?" asked Gendry as they waited outside for her brothers to come down

"My name is Arya, stupid"

"I know, but I like 'Arry'" Arya muttered stupid under her breath and Gendry sighed "Please?"

"It's my father, Ned Stark, the man from yesterday's accident? He didn't made it."

"I'm sorry"

"It's not you fault" Arya sighed "and I am sorry to drag you into this, you really don't have to go"

"No, I want to," he said "No, I mean—I knew you father, he was a good client, I mean, a good man that was a client" he hesitated on what to say next, and stared at his shoes "He was nice, he always asked about my studies and chatted with me"

They stayed silent for a while until Gendry said with a lighter tone;

"And what kind of friend would I be if I didn't go?"


	2. The Guests

** The Guests **

****

** Tyrion **

 

The only place Tyrion Lannister would rather be than a funeral was anywhere else. Gods knew, he would rather spend the whole day with his father that with the grieving family.

The burial had been devastating, especially for the kids; the youngest boy barely being able to hold his tears that quickly had turned into anger, the younger of the girls looking like a zombie in the need of a good sleep, and the older girl trying to be mom for everyone trying to hide her own pain.

Few people were still in front of the grave; Jon Stark among them.

Tyrion remembered Jon was studying in what was his _Alma Mater_. Tyrion walked to him when he noticed he was with what he supposed it was Jon’s lady friend.

“Jon is good to see you” greeted the imp and Jon turned to him.

“Is good to see you too.” Responded the oldest of Ned Stark children, with the shadow of a smile in his face, “this is my friend Ygritte. Ygritte this is Tyrion” the red head didn’t flinch at his sight, and for that he liked her already.

Tyrion stretched his hand to her “Tyrion Lannister, at your service”

Now she flinched. _Interesting._

“Lannister?” she asked, with a strange color to her voice “as in Tywin Lannister?”

“Do you know my father?”

“No,” she answered dryly “but if I did I would surely tell him that—“

“Ygritte is an ecology enthusiast” stated Jon, cutting her off, “we all know what you would say”

“You know nothing, Jon Snow”

“Jon Snow?” asked Tyrion trying to hide his amusement.

“It’s a long story”

Tyrion laughed, “Yes, I imagine, Jon Snow” Ygritte high-fived him.

Jon huffed and turned his attention away from them and into where the younger Stark girl was with a young man. Tyrion saw the young man—a tall, slightly muscular and obviously out of place young man—laugh about something and Arya shoving him into the ground.

Jon excused himself and ran to his sister

“He is been trying to separate the all mornin’” informed Ygritte “He is a little overprotective, it seems”

“I don’t blame him, after what my nephew did to Sansa, is just normal”

“Your nephew?”

“The dated for a while, but I can’t say is was a good romance”

“So it was bad romance?”

“If I say yes, will you dance and sing?”

“Hell no”

“So, yes, it was a bad romance”

The pair saw Arya playfully—or that they hoped—kick her friend in the ribs just as Jon reached them, ready to not so playfully join his sister.

“Hate to go” Ygritte excused herself and Tyrion turned to the last person in front of the brand new grave. Sansa.

She was talking to her father, in soft whispers hoping in that way her sobs would not come out.

“And sorry about the doll incident, it was really lovely...” she whispered, her fingers playing with the edge of her cardigan. She stopped talking when she felt Tyrion presence and turned to him.

Tyrion knew it was not exactly correct, but he had a soft spot for Sansa. When seh was dating his nephew he had met her and had had the opportunity to talk with her. And after everything Joffrey did, he felt a little bit guilty of never doing anything to protect her from the little bastard.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” asked Sansa softly and Tyrion could see unshed tears in her eyes.

“Actually, I was going to ask the same”

Sansa’s eyes returned to where her father now rested.

“Sansa, if you need anyone to talk to—“

“Thanks,” she interrupted him, something incredible rude for her, “I really appreciate it, but...” Sansa drifted off, pressing her lips together

“You were going to say that everything is fine, weren’t you?”

“Yes,” she sighed.

“But the thing is, everything is not fine...”

“I am still waiting for him to appear, to call us” Sansa took a glimpse of her cell phone, “Sandor said it was normal, that it was going to take time for me, for us, to get around the idea of him being gone”

“Sandor?” Tyrion didn’t even bother to hide the surprise in his voice.

“Oh, yes” she blushed, _she blushed?_   “he gave me his number, after taking me to the hospital”

_So that’s why he didn’t went to work yesterday_

Podrick Payne—Tyrion’s personal assistant—decided to appear in that moment, talking and moving with his usual awkwardness.

“Miss Sansa, your mother, Mrs Catelyn, she is waiting for you, she says is time to go home”

Tyrion turned where Jon and Arya where but found no one.

“Please Pod, tell Mrs Stark that Sansa wants to stay here a little bit longer, she can go with us”

“But your sister is already leaving too, sir”

“Well, so call someone to pick us up later. Cleagane or your uncle” Podrick looked at Sansa and then Tyrion, opening his mouth like a dying fish, “he has to bring me some papers anyway”

“But here?” Pod asked, almost in pain “What if I lose them?”

_Can some be so incompetent?_

Tyrion really but really appreciated his young assistant, there was something in him that just made Tyrion like him. There was also something in him that remind Tyrion of his younger self, so yes, he really appreciated his assistant.

But sometimes he wished he could just slap him on the back of his head.

“Is not necessary, really” said Sansa with the faintest voice “I will go now, and I hope I will see you later?”

Tyrion nodded and he and Pod walked to the car where his sweet sister and brother-in-law were waiting.

“He didn’t came!” complained Cersei, “he said he would come to the burial but he didn’t come!” She turned to Tyrion, “Where the hell is he?”

Tyrion didn’t needed to ask who she was talking about, “he is your twin, not mine,” he said as he reached for his cell phone and quickly called his older brother.

_“Hello”_

“You missed the burial”

“ _Oh shit_ ,” Jaime cursed _, “I’ll send them flowers or something. Is not like Catelyn can hate me more, you know?”_ he half heartedly joked.

“So, got any luck?”

“ _What?”_ Tyrion quickly checked; his sister was complaining about something with Robert, so he asked again.

“Have you gotten any closer to her pants?”

_“Whose pants?”_

“I don’t know, maybe the woman you’ve been following for the past two months”

_“It hasn’t been that long!”_

“Ah well, 6 weeks”

 _“Better”_ and then Jamie quickly added, “ _And I am not following the wench”_

“What kind of pet name is that one? She is never going to sleep with you if you talk to her like that...”

_“Ha!”_

“Oh well, I‘ll crate and excuse for you. Good luck with your wench, you seem to need it”

“ _Don’t tell Cersei!”_

Tyrion hung up the phone, drowning his brother’s words and kept the rest of the trip in silence, listening to his sister complain.

When they arrived to the Starks mansion, Robert went immediately with Catelyn and Cersei disappeared to, probably, get a glass of wine.

“Do you want me to call Cleagane now?” Pod quickly added “Sir”

The question took Tyrion for surprise

“What?”

“Cleagane, you said you needed some documents...”

Tyrion could not help himself

“Are you _that_ thick?”

“Sir?”

“Of course you are”

“I just thought Cleagane could bring the papers here, without the rush... of coming and going, and he would have to go down of the car, and... and he could wait for you to revise them.... and maybe stay? So we could leave at the time you prefer, sir”

That seemed like an awful good explanation

“Did you heard something you weren’t’ supposed to hear?” asked Tyrion and Podrick smile, almost mischievously.

“I will make the call”

“I am a little bit impressed” Tyrion chuckled

Podrick went outside to make the call while Tyrion walked into the living room. In a corner Jon, Robb, Ygritte, Arya and her friend were talking, while Robert sat with Catelyn and some old friends of them.

Sansa was placing some snack in a table.

“Have you seen my brother?” asked the unmistakable voice of the always charming Stannis Baratheon, taking Tyrion out of his trance.

“Oh, hello to you too” greeted with sarcasm Tyrion “He is with Cat”

“I meant Renly”

“Oh, I think he took Tommen to grab something to eat”

Stannis walked pass him and Tyrion rolled his eyes. Some men were just that... Stannis.

“Cleagane is coming” announced Pod, in a manner a little too happy for a funeral.

Tyrion clapped his hands and rubbed them, “well, well, well now is just time to wait”

Tyrion walked towards Jon Snow—he really liked the nick name—and his table. He greeted them all.

That, before cursing.

Arya’s friend looked remarkably like Renly, but even more than Renly; he looked like Robert Baratheon.

_My sweet sister is going to have a fit_

“Oh, I am so sorry” he apologized with a smile, “you just looked so much like Renly Baratheon; my brother-in-law’s youngest brother”

“Is is exactly what I just told him” said Jeyne, Robb’s fiancé, “for a second I mistook him for Renly”

The boy no longer looked so out of place like in the graveyard, while Jon still looked at him like if the boy had commited an awful crime, Jeyne, Robb and Ygritte talked to him effortlessly. Arya on her part, looked tired, but seemed to enjoy his company.

“What’s your name, boy?” asked Tyrion holding out a hand to him

“Gendry Waters, sir”

“Tyrion Lannister”

Tyrion sat besides Ygritte, with who quickly engaged a conversation of Lannister Industries and their continue negligence in the environment department and quickly Jon joined. The conversation had taken a turn into the origin of Jon’s nickname when Sansa came looking for him.

“Sorry, Tyrion,” he had asked her to call him for his first name when she was dating Joffrey, “Sandor is here. He told me he had something for you”

“Of course, my dear. Would you mind walking with me?”

Sansa accompanied him with a pretty blush on her cheeks. The same she used to have when she first started dating Joffrey. “I’ve noticed you’ve been busy this afternoon”

“Oh, it’s nothing, is just... the guests...” she tried to explain, avoiding his gaze.

“Oh no, I understand. Is good to keep your mind busy, but is also necessary for you to talk with someone, eventually,” stated Tyrion as their reach the main entrance, where Sandor stood calmly

“Cleagane! I good to see you here, and so fast”

“Everything in the office is slow with you all here. There was hardly anything to do,” he growled to Tyrion. Tyrion knew the young man well enough to know that growling was his way of talking, and that there was no danger. So he was even more surprised when Sandor turned to Sansa and un a uncharacteristically soft voice he said, “Hello, little bird”

Sansa didn’t smile like to the rest of the guests that day, she simply nodded, and Tyrion thought it was a good sign.

_At least with someone she can stop acting._

“See Cleagane, my sweet sister is more probably than not, going to return back home quite early, and as you know I came with her. Would it be too much of a problem for yourself if you stayed around? As you said, the office is quite slow today and I am in desperate need of a ride later.”

Tyrion didn’t even hide his smile; he knew Sandor wasn’t even sparing him a glance.

“No problem”

He could swear he saw something spark in Sansa’s eyes.

 

** Daenerys **

 

Daenerys closed the 10th box of the day and sighed tiredly. She took a glance around what used to be her living room and she knew that she already missed it. She had really liked—no, loved this apartment, but it was time to move out.

“Mhysa” called a childish voice and Dany turned her attention to little Missandei

“What’s wrong sweetie?” Missandei was an orphan girl Daenerys had adopted after the death of her husband and child. She had seen her in the hospital after a check up, she was getting her shots and Dany just fell in love with her.

The day they told her she could not bear any more children she had decided to become a mother anyway.

“Drogon bit me” Dany kneeled in front of her and took her little hand between hers.

“Does it hurts a lot?” she asked and the girl vigorously shook her head.

“Just a little,” she said, “We were playing, but his teeth are becoming too sharp”

“I’ll go talk to him” she said before kissing the girls hand and standing up, “go get your sweater, is time to grab lunch”

Missandei ran to her room and Dany entered to her own room, which was already empty, with the exception of three dogs.

Dany never knew what had possessed her to get the dogs, but she was happy. The only problem is that they were starting to grow, becoming adults, and the space was too small.

_Another good reason to move out._

Drogon was a German shepherd, the most active and the biggest of the three, it trotted to Dany and sat in front of her.

“I am mad at you,” she said, “you should not bite Missie, you know that”

Drogon coked it’s head to the side, and Dany knew it was a lost cause talking to him. She looked at her other dogs; Viserion, a Dalmatian, was lying under the sunlight, looking at Dany an moving its tail happily, and Rhaegal, a boxer, sleep close to Viserion, totally ignoring Dany.

“I’ll bring you food, make no disasters, okay?”

 

“Missi” called sweetly Dany to her daughter, “is there something wrong? You had barely touched your food”

“I...” Missandei looked at Dany in the eyes, with big shiny eyes, “do we really have to leave?”

Dany sighed; in general Missandei was hardly any trouble, but since Daenerys had told her about moving to Westeros the girl had been afraid, constantly asking Daenerys for reassurance that everything was going to be fine.

The problem was, Daenerys wasn’t that sure.

“I have to take my father’s business back, sweetie” Dany informed “and I can’t do that all the way back here” she stretched her hand and softly poked her nose, “but I promise you are going to love it there”

Missandei smiled and turned to her food, eating slowly. Dany turned her attention to the small TV they had on the corner, a name in the news calling her attention.

“Stark is dead” she muttered but Missandei seemed to ignore her.

Eddard Stark had help Robert Baratheon to take her fathers business out of his hands, with the help of her father’s own lawyer, Jamie Lannister.

And now he was dead.

Some part of her felt happy for it, and some part felt a little bit bad for his wife and kids; she knew how hard it must have been for them.

But for the betrayer felt nothing.

“Sweetheart, do you want some ice cream? Or do you want to head home now? Remember tomorrow is going to be a big day, and we need to finish packing”

 

 

** Osha **

 

The house was full of people, but the little lord was nowhere to be found.

Each of the Stark kids had reacted differently to their grief; Robb botteling up, for how she looked Osha was sure Arya hadn’t slept, and Sansa had taken care of everyone so she didn’t had to take care of herself.

The little lord? He has translated everything to rage.

He was still a child, bearly ten years old, and he had just lost his father, Osha understood he was angry.

But she worried. She worried her little lord would do something stupid.

Osha finally found little Rickon hiding in the garden, holding Shaggydog to him.

“Here you are, little lord” she said soflty, “I was worried a grumpkin had kidnapped you” Rickon didn’t laugh, nor scoffed. He didn’t  even acknowledge the comment. He just sat there, hugging his dog and looking at some lost point in the distance.

“He is not coming back, is he?” he asked, burring his face into Shaggydog

“No, little lord” there was no reason to lie to him. His eyes started shining with tears

“He left us” he whispered, “He left me”

“No, little lord” Osha sat beside him, and combed his hair with her hands, “He didn’t left you” Rickon shed a tear and Osha pulled him to her “He didn’t left you, he is gone, but he didn’t chose leave you all”

“Is not fair”

“Death is not always fair” she tried to explain

“So why he had to die?!” Rickon cried, as he stood up and whipped the tears from his eyes “He didn’t want to leave us! It wasn’t his choice! You said so!” his screams soon turned into sobs while tears ran freely on his face, “No one wanted him to leave!” he sobbed, looking at the ground “I didn’t want him to leave.”

Shaggy dog stood and walked towards his master, nudging his hand while whining softly “Why I can’t see him again?”

“Maybe you will” Osha didn’t knew what possessed her to tell the boy that, but she did “Maybe you will see him again, someday”

“What if I don’t?”

Osha stayed on the floor, looking at the boy cry for his father, knowing that it would be of no use to hold him. He didn’t want to be hold, not for her.

He just wanted for his father to come back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is chapter two. I had a lot of trouble with this one; first I wanted to eliminate one of the POV’s because... I just wanted to. And then I discovered I wanted a fourth one and I didn’t knew who to use, because Davos (who was my first option) would have probably ruined the dynamic of the next chapter (It all became a disaster when I decided that instead of dividing the chapters by time, I would divide it by group of people, but anything for the sake of not having to think names for the chapters).
> 
> And it there was also the problem with the language, anyone interested in beta read me?


	3. The Brothers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to RedSmileyFace for Beta Reading :)

** Stannis **

Stannis was a patient man, generally.

But it was impossible, even for R'hllor, to be patient towards his brothers: Robert was a drunken fool and Renly acted like a child.

 _Why has God punished me with brothers?_ He thought bitterly as he grinded his teeth, looking of Renly.

"Have you seen my brother?" asked Stannis to Tyrion Lannister, who seemed a little lost in his thoughts.

"Oh, hello to you too," Tyrion replied with sarcasm, "Robert is with Cat."

"I meant Renly."

"Oh, I think he took Tommen to grab something to eat."

Stannis walked pass him and kept looking for Renly. He roamed the room, gave his condolences to Catelyn, who was talking to a surprisingly sober Robert, and kept looking for his younger brother. There was no sign of Renly—or Loras—yet.

"I can't believe him," he muttered. There was Renly, talking to Jon and Robb, and he looked strangely unkempt.

"Here you are! Where were you?!" Stannis demanded in a growl, pulling Renly by the shoulder and making his younger brother turn towards him.

Only, it wasn't Renly.

Stannis felt the necessity to state just that.

"You are not Renly."

"No," said the boy that was not Renly.

"I am... sorry, my mistake."

It didn't take Stannis four seconds to place two and two together.

_Another bastard, I imagine._

Stannis already knew of Robert's little indiscretions; the girls in America before he got married, and Edric (whose mother had already married and the kid hadn't been a problem, thanks R'hllor) and for all Stannis knew Robert had just met his youngest daughter.

_How has this kid gotten here?_

"Greetings my dear brother," Renly said, virtually appearing from nowhere.

"What took you so long?" Stannis ignored the mock in his younger brother's voice and snarled to him. "Have you spoken to Catelyn yet?"

"Of course I will, I've just arrived, brother" Renly said as he cleaned invisible dust from his suit.

"You go now; Robert is going to get furious that it took you so long."

Renly smiles sarcastically and walked towards the widow. Stannis walking close behind him.

"I don't need an escort."

Stannis ground his teeth at that.

"Oh Catelyn" greeted Renly with the perfect level of grief in his voice, that little snake, "I am so sorry for your loss."

Catelyn took the words graciously, and while she was obviously devastated, she hadn't broken down in front of the guests.

"I heard your siblings aren't coming?" asked Stannis. Robert, who hadn't been so good at hiding his grief, stared at him with red, angry eyed.

"Roslin is heavily pregnant," she sighed, "she is going to give birth any minute now, I wouldn't want Edmure to miss the birth of his first child. And you know Lysa."

 _The crazy, paranoiac one?_ Stannis thought, "Yes, of course."

"Don't worry cat. Whatever you need, here we are for you," said Robert solemnly placing a hand on Cat's shoulder.

_Wait, we?_

"I bet you he is drunk." Whispered Renly

"I don't bet lost causes." Stannis said causing Renly to chuckle, but truth to be told Robert didn't look so drunk, he looked... broken.

It was the whole Lyanna Stark drama again.

Then again, Robert had always called Ned 'The brother he chose'.

"Come brother, we need to talk." Ordered Renly, always acting as if he had some power.

Renly helped Robert to get up, and gently pulled him far away from Catelyn.

"What do you want?" asked Robert annoyed.

"Nothing, just to give Cat a second of peace." Said Renly matter of fact, and Robert frowned at him.

"Where is Tommen?" Robert asked

"I think he is with the Stark child, Bran," answered Renly.

"Of course, of course," grumbled Robert.

"Myrcella?" asked Stannis.

"Will arrive with that boyfriend of hers, Trystane," said Robert.

Of course Joffrey was not appearing, and still the boy was here.

"May I ask something brother?" Stannis asked, with his hands on his back and looking at Robert intensely; the same look he would use when scolding a child.

"What do you want now?" growled Robert.

"Who in his sane judgment brings his wife, even if it is Cercsei and she is half the devil, to where his illegitimate child is going to be? Can you be more...?" Stannis struggled to finish the question but ended up not needing to.

"What are you talking about?" Robert asked bewildered, "Edric is with that sister-in-law of yours."

"So you are not aware of the boy?" Stannis pointed with his head to where the boy and the youngest Stark girls were talking to a blond boy.

Renly almost choked on his wine, but composed quickly and asked, "Who is he?"

"And why is he with little Lyanna?" asked Robert.

"You know her name is Aura," sighed Stannis.

"Arya." Renly corrected.

"Yes."

The three of them stayed quiet for a minute, watching the boy until Robert finally muttered something and left, walking towards the boy.

"Great, look at what you've done." said Renly, taking a sip of his wine.

"Me?" Stannis asked, furious, "I think this is all his doing! I mean, look at the boy!"

Stannis didn't need to elaborate. The boy was tall, black haired and had Baratheon blue eyes. He also looked like Robert in his prime, and when Robert greeted him and Arya, both noticed he was as tall as Robert, if not a little more.

The little exchange between Robert and the little Stark would pass as the most common thing to everyone. Robert was known for having an obvious and not so secret favoritism for his 'little Lyanna', but for the Baratheon brothers, they knew there was an* hidden intention to it.

After a few minutes, Robert came back with a serious expression.

"His name is Gendry." Robert said.

_Gendry?_

"He was Ned's mechanic."

_Of course, him._

"Did he knows about you?" asked Renly, before sipping his wine. Robert shook his head.

"I don't know about him." Robert muttered, clearly angry, "but it is obvious Ned knew about him!"

"Of course he knew." Stannis said.

"Then why didn't he tell me anything?" He cried, fisting his hands in frustration.

"For what?" Asked Stannis. He was at his patience's end and was not going to stand his brother acting like a little kid, "He is an adult, he has a job, and even if he was a kid; you wouldn't take any care of him! You never had before, so why tell you?"

Robert stared at Stannis, trying to intimidate him.

"I had the right to know about him."

"What could you've done? Send him money anonymously? That boy is a hardworking lad and he does not need you pity."

"You knew about him?" the question was almost a whisper, but it wasn't ignored.

 _Why lie?_ "Yes, I have heard of him before, when he was younger."

"And why didn't you tell me?"

Renley sighed and rolled his eyes

"You know what children? While you discuss about the past, I'll fix this."

"Do what you want," growled Stannis, " you always have."

** Renly **

Renly stopped in his tracks, eyes wide, and mouth opening like a fish out of water.

"Uncle," called little Tommen, "what's wrong?"

"I remembered something important about the business, you go inside." He urged to his nephew, and once the young and innocent kid left, Renly carefully hid and spied on the nearby couple.

If you had asked Renly Baratheon what he would expect to see during the day, he would have never answered 'Sansa Stark and Sandor Cleagane sharing a moment'.

But there it was, happening before his eyes.

The pretty redhead was sitting besides the Lannister Hound, who looked uncomfortable at the fact that Sansa was clutching at his hand.

She was most probably doing it for support than anything else—or that was what Renly supposed. Sansa Stark had never, ever, seemed to be the kind of girl that would end up with a guy like... Sandor.

_Should I interrupt?_

But Renly decided against it when he saw the Hound pull Sansa's hand and held it between both his hands, in a gesture Renly found incredibly affectionate and touching for a guy like him.

He quickly got into the house and scanned for either of his brothers, or the Starks. He found Stannis.

"Greetings, my dear brother."

.x.

Renly clearly remember the day he had come out to his brothers, and he clearly remember Robert's word; 'The fuck I care what you do in your free time, just don't get me in any trouble'.

He was sure this was not going to go against his older brother's words, so he was going to take that as a green light.

He walked towards the young man, who looked at him with shock on his face, his very, but very, Baratheon face.

"So you must be Renly," he said after composing himself.

"Oh, you've heard of me?"

"A couple of people mentioned I looked like you" he said trying to not look uncomfortable, and failing at that, really.

"I see why" Renly smiled, the boy looked at his side, where he surely expected to see Arya just to find out she was no longer there

"I heard you met both my brothers..." Renly added with a big smile and stretching the last part.

"Gendry." he introduced himself

"A pleasure."

Gendry kept shifting awkwardly in his place, as if not finding how to stand. "Your brothers?"

Renly turned to where his brothers were. Stannis was grinding his teeth so hard his dentist was probably hearing the money coming. And Robert... his expression was something Renly had never seen. He was scraed, that he knew, but also he seemed... expectant? Nervous?

"Yes, my brothers!" Gendry looked confused, "Yes, I am incredibly young and pretty besides them." Renly laughed and Gendry shifted uncomfortable. "Do I make you so uneasy boy?"

"I... I am just not used to his kind of social environments I guess, plus this is a funeral... and I am not a boy." He finished stubbornly.

"Of course you are not." Renly sighed, the hard part was to come, and by Gendry's expression, it seemed he knew that too.

"I think the four of us have to talk."

Gendry looked at the floor and took a deep breath. "I think so too."

** Gendry **

He turned the card one more time and huffed.

 _Well isn't this great?!_ He thought bitterly. _Isn't this fucking great?_

He ran a hand through his hair. This day couldn't get any weirder, and it was all Hot Pie & Lommie's fault.

When the pair had started to pick on a little girl, _well, she isn't a little girl, she is a girl who happened to be really short for a 15 year old_ , but when the girl punched Hot Pie, he knew he had to jump in before more blood was shed.

And then he looked at her, and well, fuck.

She looked so exhausted, so given up, and her eyes were so sad.

He had planned to just leave her home. He honestly planned to just drop her at her doorstep and that was all.

But then her sister had to mentioned the hair and he just thought someone needed to cut her some slack. He honestly thought she was so sad because some stupid self-image reason or something.

_Pfft_

He had ended up tangled up in a funeral, which happened to be Eddard Stark's.

He felt his blood ran cold from the memory and shook his head, trying to erase everything that had happened the day before.

The issue now was his long lost family, and the fact that he didn't know anyone in the funeral.

How dare she abandon him like that?

_Well, this is her father's funeral;_ _he should not be so insensitive towards her…_

...But she probably was with that blond jerk, Edric

_Let's be honest here, he seems like a good lad._

And now he was talking to himself.

Damn her, damn Arya Stark and her...

"Hey," a soft voice cut in and he looked up.

"Hey," he greeted too, seeing Arya besides him.

"Sorry for abandoning you." she apologized, avoiding his gaze.

"Where were you?" he asked, trying not to sound annoyed.

"I..." she bit her lip, "I went to my room... I wanted to take a nap."

She had mentioned earlier that she hadn't slept the previous night, and she had looked tired. So it was good she had gone to sleep and not to talk with that Edric.

But the thing was, she didn't looked rested at all.

"What happened?"

"I can't, I just can't sleep. Or !" she turned to look at him with glistening eyes, "I was the first there, at the hospital, I saw him there, with all the blood and someone pulled me," her voice broke "they didn't want me to see, but I heard, everyone was panicking... I can't close my eyes without seeing him."

"...Me neither."

He avoided her eyes, he better confess.

"I was there, when... it happened, I ran to him... someone else called the ambulance, but I saw the crash." he sighed, "Gods, it was awful..."

"Stop."

"Sorry," she was breathing heavily but not crying, "I am sorry."

"It's... It is fine, I'm fine, just, please, let's just change the subject." she said, and it sounded like if she was almost begging him to distract her.

"What do you have there?" she asked quietly.

"This is..." _my uncle's card_ "Renly Baratheon's card."

"Why would you be interested in having his card?"

_'When you are ready to talk, call me'_

"Maybe he is the one who is interested in contacting me." he bit back

"...I thought he was with Loras."

"...What? No! Not for that!"

"Then why?"

"...Maybe he needs a mechanic!"

"And giving you his number is going to help?"

"Ok, maybe it's complicated." he tried not to yell at her.

"Or maybe it is stupid!

"What is it?"

"You are stupid."

"What?" he laughed, "You should not insult people that is bigger than you!"

"Why not? If they have a problem I will just punch them!"

"With these things?" he grabbed her small fists, "Oh please, you couldn't hurt a kitty."

She didn't answer right away but looked at him strangely, "I hurt Hot Pie." she mumbled, avoiding his gaze.

"Hot Pie doesn't count, he is weaker than a kitten," he rolled his eyes but never let go of her hands, which was no longer a fist.

After several minutes he couldn't help saying, "you have strange fingers."

Arya rolled her eyes, "Yeah, I know, it is because I always do this." she took one finger and pulled it back, until it touched her wrist

"Seven Hells! Does that hurt?"

"No."

They both continued playing with Arya's hands and joking, both of them forgetting about their fathers.


	4. The Boys

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to RedSmileyFace for Beta-Reading this :)

**The Boys**

**Jon**

It was dark already and most guests had already left. The few people that stayed were the people that were close to their family.

_And that Gendry guy, what's his deal?_

Jon had silently watched Arya arrive with that boy, and then had silently taken both of them to the cemetery, and had silently accepted his presence the whole day. _They_ had spent practically all day together, and Jon had seen _them_ holding hands!

 _Ok,_ the rational voice in Jon's head started, _maybe Arya was just showing off how flexible her hands were, but still! It was extremely inappropriate!_

_Maybe not as inappropriate as Ygritte and me sharing a bed last night, but still, it was inappropriate._

And while his big brother instinct told him that the main issue was Arya, he knew that he needed to take care of Sansa too. Sansa was clutching at her phone like her life depended on it; she had been since he saw her in the afternoon. But he knew he couldn't tell her anything. He and Robb had a deal; Arya was Jon's little sister and Sansa was Robb's.Because of that, Jon knew he couldn't tell Sansa to leave her phone, or ask her to talk to him about what happened with Joffrey Baratheon, or about what Renly had told him earlier in the afternoon. They simply didn't have that kind of relationship.

…It had nothing to do with the fact that Sansa had called him 'half brother' for virtually 17 years.

So, instead of taking Sansa to the kitchen and questioning her about Sandor Cleagene, he, his sibilings, Ygritte, Jeyne, and Gendry were sitting in the living room, talking about his father.

"Remember when he took us fishing?" Robb asked, an arm around Jeyne, his eyes sad, but smiling softly. Jon smiled at him while remembering the first and only 'Monthly Fishing Trip' their father had taken them before deciding he hated fishing.

"Rickon turned the boat over," continued Jon, smiling at his youngest brother who sat besides Robb and Jeyne, "and Theon decided that only the strongest could be on the boat."

"Dad obviously got him down!" Bran laughingly told Jeyne, who had never heard of that story before. He was petting Summer, who sat in front of him with his head on his legs, "But he didn't let us up."

"Only the strongest could be the King." Laughed Robb.

"King in the Boat!" Cheered the four brothers with sad smiles. Jon could almost see his father, standing over the upside down boat, smiling and wet, " _Come on boys_ ," he teased, " _how is it possible that an old man beat you all?"_

"…That day I lost my favorite watch." Whined Robb.

"That watch was hideous." Remembered Sansa, before returning her eyes to her cell phone. Jon wondered if she had always been so addicted to that thing.

"But it was my favorite!" Reiterated Robb.

Jon saw Arya shift in her seat, laying her head on Gendry, who had his arm resting on the back of the couch. She mumbled something, and Gendry smiled and patted her hair… and Jon was not happy about it.

"Remember that time Arya ran away from home?" asked Bran, causing Gendry to raise an eyebrow. Arya turned her head, facing away from Gendry.

"Of course! We thought she was gone forever! Sansa even cried hugging her favorite hoddie." laughed Robb and both Sansa and Arya glared at him.

"I did not cry."

"She is gone," Bran said with a high-pitched voice, "she is gone forever!"

"That's not true!"

"You promised you were never going to eat lemon cakes again if she came back" said Robb, smiling.

"I would never, ever say that." Scoffed Sansa.

"What happened?" Asked Gentry of Arya, who took her time before answering.

"I was trying to catch a cat…"

"A cat! No one EVER saw that cat" cried Sansa.

"Because I didn't catch it!!" Arya replied, clearly annoyed, "I ended up getting a _little bit_ far from home and luckily found dad in the street, when he was returning from work."

"How long were you lost?" Asked Gendry, who looked slightly amused.

"I wasn't lost!!" Almost screamed Arya, before answering quietly, with red tinted cheeks. "And, I don't know, four hours?"

They all laughed, quietly, but laughed. Jon was incredibly thankful of that.

"You know what I will never forget? When he taught me how to drive." Said Sansa, smiling.

"Do you mean when he _tried_ to teach you?" asked Robb.

"I think he aged a decade the first week!" Laughed Jon.

"It wasn't that bad!"

"By the time you got your driving permit," Robb recalled, looking directly into Sansa's eyes, "he had gotten half a head of grey hair and started taking all this crazy herbal teas for the nerves."

"Oh, now you are exaggerating!" Exclaimed Sansa.

"You crashed the car easily ten times." Mentioned Bran, almost sounding casual.

"But in a six months period!"

"How did you manage to get the permit?" Arya asked.

"I cried a little bit in the exam, but that is not the point!"

"Wait," said Gendry, "were you driving this _really_ girly, light blue car? With a bird sticker on the back?"

"Yes… why?"

"That car paid for the mortgage of the garage!" Laughed Gendry, and everybody joined him.

"I am seriously not such a bad driver!" Cried Sansa.By now, it had been the longest Jon had seen her without checking her phone the whole afternoon.

"Not now," yawned Arya, "but you were. Gods, not even Theon wanted to take a ride with you, and he seriously has the lowest self preservation instinct in the world."

Ygritte turned to Jon and softly asked; "Who is Theon?" Jon knew she had asked good naturedly, but still took his time to answer.

Looking around, getting sure that no one was paying attention to them, Jon answered quietly, "He used to live with us, a foster brother kind of thing," Ygritte nodded, since she already knew that part of the story, but let Jon talk, who then added darkly, "we have not spoken to him in months, there was a problem here while I was at the Wall and no one has told me exactly what happened."

"You haven't asked?"

"I don't know who to ask, I am not sure who knows what happened, not even Robb knows exactly, and well…" his father probable knew exactly what had happened, but he hadn't asked before, and it was too late to ask now.

Jon saw Arya yawn, looking utterly haggard. "You should go to sleep," he said.Arya glared at him; she hated when anyone told her what to do, even if it was he favorite brother.

"I don't—" started Arya, when Sansa cut in. "Yes, we should, it has been a terribly long day, right Rickon? Bran?"

The two younger brothers nodded; Rickon because he was actually tired, and Bran because he knew that would stop Arya from bickering.

Gendry stood up besides Arya, mumbling; "Maybe I should leave."

"Yes," answered Jon, "maybe you should." _He could have said that in a nicer tone._

"Come," said Arya, "I'll walk you to the door."

"No, you go to sleep, I'll walk him." Said Jon; and judging by Gendry's face, he was quite uncomfortable with the idea.

_Good._

"It's not necessary," stated Arya, noticing the uneasiness in Gendry

"Yes, it is" Jon stated, with his big brother voice, and Arya knew she was defeated.

"Oh, follow me." Sansa said to Gendry, standing up. How she managed to walk without bumping into anything was a mystery, since she was writing a text at the same time.

Gendry looked at Arya, who urged him to follow Sansa.

Jon threw a look to Robb, almost asking him for support. Robb only shrugged.

_I knew that deal was eventually going to get back at me._

Ygritte threw Jon a mocking smile, and Jon huffed before following Sansa and Gendry. When he reached the front door, he only found Sansa closing the door.

"What was that?" Jon asked, and Sansa looked up from her phone.

"What was what?"

" _That!_ Why didn't you let me walk him out?"

Sansa smiled sweetly, "It was the proper thing to do, brother." She said before walking towards the stairs, leaving him confused.

_Bother? No, I'm probably wrong._

Jon kept replaying the scene in his head, just to be sure if Sansa had called him either 'brother', or 'half-brother'. He ended up more confused, and once he reached his room he was considering that maybe she simply called him 'Jon'.

"What's wrong?" Asked Ygritte, who was already in his room since everybody had already left.

"I don't know what my sister just called me"

"Oh, you know nothing, Jon Snow." Ygritte said with a big smile, but Jon frowned; he was starting to get annoyed by that little joke.

"Stop saying that."

"I would, if you stopped giving me so many good set ups!"

Jon huffed and sat on his bed, taking off his shoes.

"Oh, don't be mad." Said Ygritte, sitting beside him, arms and legs crossed.

Jon moved away, really slightly, but Ygritte still noticed.

"Oh, I am the great Jon Snow, and I am scared of girls," said Ygritte in a mocking voice.

"I am not scared of girls," grumbled Jon, "and my name is not Jon Snow!"

"My name is not Jon Snow!"

Jon turned his head, ready to tell Ygritte to stop it, but the moment he saw how close he was to her, he fell silent. Ygritte smiled at him, and leaned forward, pecking him on the lips. Jon looked at her in shock. She simply laughed and stood up, muttering something about a shower.

And Jon knew that this was the first of a series of inhumanly long days.

**Bran**

Bran waited until Jon was silent before climbing outside his window. He had already sent a text to Jojen and it was getting late. Slowly, Bran walked over the roof, slowly checking the windows of his sisters to get sure they were sleeping.

Arya, obviously was; she had been half sleep for the whole day, and virtually sleeping when they were talking downstairs. She had her whole body under the covers, even her head, and the only visible skin being her fingers clutching the blanket, and Nymeria besides her, sleeping.

Bran tiptoed to the next window. Sansa, in contrast with Arya, slept in a way that looked almost faked. No one can look that good when sleeping.

Bran tiptoed and climbed down the wall, carefully, he didn't want to fall and break a leg again.

The last summer he had being climbing to his room when he fall and ended up crawling to a tree so no one knew exactly what he was doing, or what he was going to do.

 _Just innocently trying to check if I didn't left anything in the roof while sneaking around, nothing else._ He told to himself, but still he knew that answer wouldn't have kept him out of trouble.

He jumped when he was close enough to the ground and Summer ran from wherever it was hidden in the garden.

"Quiet, Summer." Bran whispered before running towards the street.

He didn't have to run very far, the small forest was close to his home.

Jojen and Meera were already there, Summer ran to greet them before Bran.

"Hey," Bran greeted, breathless.

"You are late," said Jojen, and while normally he would have said it as a scolding, today he said it in an almost softer way.

Meera smiled at him before placing a blanket on the floor, and getting all her equipment out of her bag. She had being taking an astronomy class and had asked Jojen to join her, who eventually asked Bran to join them, since he knew Bran would be up anyways. Jojen and Bran had being sneaking out of their houses in the night for months, but now at least they had something to do.

"How was it?" asked Jojen, once everything was settled.

"Long," Bran answered. When he first met Jojen he hadn't liked him much, he was sometimes too direct, but as time passed by he noticed he found quite refreshing to met someone which who he could talk, really talk without tiptoeing around everything.

Meera took a notepad out of her backpack and read it with the help of her cell phone's light.

"Okay" she said, checking the hour, "It is almost time, the red comet should appear any minute now."

"Such a big thing had to happen today." murmured Bran as he prepared himself for the comet.

"Here, it is" said Meera, who didn't hear Bran, or acted as if she hadn't. "Come, take a look." she said as she pulled Bran to his feet. Bran looked to the comet through the telescope and for a second he let himself think that this comet was just for his father.

"It's amazing." said Bran, moving so Jojen could see.

"People used to believe it meant Dragons were coming." said Meera, but neither of the boys answered.

Usually Bran would have answered but today he didn't think he could, he wasn't sure why he was with the Reeds. He knew he had to sleep but he also knew that he didn't want to be alone, and to dream. He had dreamt of his father the night before and in the morning, and when he had realized it was all a dream, he had felt empty. He didn't want to dream now.

He sat there for a while, watching the comet and let the Reeds comment about it with him, but he barely spoke. After a while, Bran stood up and said good night, saying how tired he was.

He walked slowly back to his house, Summer close to him. When he was few meters away from the gate he stopped; there was someone there.

Bran couldn't tell the person's face in the dark, but he knew it was a man, probably young. The man was resting his back on his car, looking at the gate and smoking.

Bran recognized that car. "Theon?" he asked and Theon turned to him, alarmed.

"Bran! It is really late! What are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same." Bran said, so quietly he thought Theon hadn't heard, but he did.

Theon dropped his cigarette to the ground and step on it. "I thought I should come, but then I thought it would better if I didn't enter. I guess I can't decide"

They both stood there in silent for a minute or so, until Bran broke the silence. "I didn't think I would see you again."

"Well, I thought I wouldn't see you again too, you know?" he said with a humorless laugh, "But then I heard of what happened yesterday and took the first flight I could." Theon looked to the ground, to the place where his stomped cigarette was and quietly said, "I am sorry."

Bran didn't answer, he wasn't sure if Theon talked about his father, or about leaving.

Or maybe he was talking about both.

"Theon-"

"I shouldn't have yelled to you like that, the day I left." Theon said, burying his hands in his jacket's pockets, "I was angry, and I wasn't thinking."

"I know."

Bran had tried not to think about that night very much, but he couldn't forget it.

Theon had been living with them for most his life, in a foster brother kind of way. When he had arrived Bran hadn't been born yet, so he always saw Theon as someone that had to be there. It wasn't until Bran was older that he discovered the truth; he had always known Theon wasn't his brother but he hadn't understood exactly why he lived with them. It seemed that Theon's father had five kids and three of them died in an accident with their mother, and Theon's father couldn't take care of them anymore. His older sister had moved with one of their uncles and for some strange reason, Eddard Stark had decided to take care of Theon.

But last year Theon had gone home to visit his father for the first time since he had moved to Winterfell; Theon and his father had shared letters and some present or another, but was the first time they would meet.

No one knew what had happened there, but when Theon came back he had yelled and took all of his stuff, the few thing he hadn't taken to college with him. The only one present that night was Bran, who had tried to stop Theon from leaving. He barely remembers what Theon had said:

_If I tell myself I don't remember, I won't._

He had later learned, by hearing his parent's conversations, that Theon's mother wasn't dead, but in a mental hospital. He had also heard some stuff about Theon's father and uncles, who didn't seem nice, but still no one knew what had happened in Pyke.

"How is your father?" Bran asked, he knew he couldn't ask for his mother, since he supposedly didn't know she was alive.

"He... he is not my father, not really," said Theon, bitterly, "my real father is gone now."

Bran looked at the floor, he felt like he would cry at any moment.

"I better go," said Theon, shaking his head, " I probably didn't think this through."

"...So, you really aren't coming in?"

"No, not now, not today." He said. "Tonight I'll go to my hotel, tomorrow... tomorrow I'll see what happens." he gave a half smile to Bran as he entered to his car. Bran crossed the gate before he stopped seeing the car and quickly ran to the house.

Bran expected everyone to be sleep, but he saw the kitchen lights on, which ruined his plan of entering through the front door. Bran quickly climbed the first tree he saw, one near the kitchen that would easily let him see what was happening inside this late.

His mother was sitting in the kitchen table, where they all ate breakfast, with a cup of tea in front of her; it was most probably cold already. Sitting in front of her was Robb.

For the first time in the whole day Bran saw his mother really grieve her husband. Her hair was a mess, her eyes red and puffy and he could see the shaky breaths she took. He couldn't see Robb's face, but he could see his shaking shoulders and was sure that he was crying too: he and her had been the strong ones for the family.

Robb reached for his mother hands and she took it, and after a long day, Catelyn Stark cried for the loss of her husband.

It wasn't until Bran was back on his bed that he realized he hadn't cried his father.

 


	5. Epilogue: Friday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to RedSmileyFace for Beta-Reading and everyone else for reading, the kudos and the comments 

**Ned**

The alarm clock besides the bed went off and a heavy hand fell on it, silencing it.

Ned Stark sat on the bed and turned to his wife who slept with her back to him. He reached to her head and delicately grasped her hair, smiling softly as he did so. Catelyn stirred and turned, smiling sleepily to Ned.

"Hey." she greeted.

"Did I wake you up?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Sorry," he apologized, kissing her softly, "go back to sleep."

Catelyn sighed as Ned stood.

After a shower Ned went to Arya's room. "Sweetheart”, he said while knocking, “it is time to get up." He heard a soft groan and a thud that he supposed that was Arya falling to the floor.

He heard her answering in her half asleep state and chuckled as he kept knocking the next door.

"Rickon," Ned called, and his youngest son walked out of his room, with Shaggy behind him, "I thought your mother told you not to let Shaggydog in your room?"

The kid just looked to his dad, with big bright eyes while Shaggydog whines besides him. Ned has no option but to sigh.

"We'll discuss it later," he messed his son hair before telling him to get breakfast, Ned walking besides him.

Sansa was already in the kitchen, eating an all-white omelette.

"Good morning father!" she greeted happily.

"Why are you so happy at this ungodly hour of the morning?" asked the dull voice of his youngest daughter as she entered the kitchen.

"Arya, be nice to your sister." Ned sighed and Arya sat beside him, after greeting him with a kiss in the cheek, "But she is right, Sansa. You are especially happy this morning."

"Well, yes. Today I go to my interview in King's Landing University!" She squealed and Arya looked at her sister as if she had lost her mind.

Ned felt his blood run cold. "Today? You? Uni?"

"Yes," Sansa said, laughing, "I told you last week."

"Oh, right…" the lack of excitement in Ned's tone was absolutely ignored.

"God's Arya!" Sansa cried, and Rickon stopped between bites of his breakfast to laugh. Arya had fellen asleep on her bowl of cereal.

"Arya! Wake up!" Ned almost yelled, "You are going to drown!"

"You are such an idiot," Sansa said as Arya lifted her head, the tip of her nose stained with milk. She just stuck her tongue out at her sister and kept eating her cereal.

"Rickon," Catelyn called as she entered the kitchen followed by Bran, "chew."

Bran grabbed a toast and took a bite while Sansa put her dish in the sink before asking to her siblings, "Ready?"

Arya and Rickon stuffed their mouths with food and nodded and Bran laughed at his siblings trying to chew.

In less than a minute Ned heard the car driving away from the house.

"They left awfully fast." muttered Ned to himself.

"Mm-hmm." Catelyn hummed as she took a sip of her coffee.

"I still remember when I wouldn't let Sansa get near a car, and now she is driving the kids to school... and now she is going to college."

"They are not kids anymore, Ned," said Catelyn softly, "Before we know it they will be grownups with their own kids."

"Rickon is still a kid!"

"Yes, but Bran is already a teenager," Catelyn pointed out, "And Arya is turning 16 in a couple of months," Ned felt his face contort and Catelyn laughed, "Oh, I was just messing around."

"I know, but... when did they grow up so much?" Ned sighed, "I miss those times when Arya hid from her nannies, Bran would ask me for stories, and all the kids lived here."

Catelyn sighed. "Maybe you could make a 'Stark Super Awesome Family Trip.'" said Catelyn softly, standing to get a cup of coffee for her husband.

"I never called them that."

"You did, believe me you did." Catelyn smiled.

"I guess I did," he muttered, "I mean, is not a bad idea, I could call Jon and maybe even Theon," he wondered out loud, "but I guess that is a bad idea."

"What? Calling Theon or going fishing?" she asked as she sat again, placing the mug in front of Ned. While Ned and Catleyn had called Theon a couple of times, they both knew it wasn't the right time for him to come back.

Still, that wasn't what caught Ned's attention.

"I never said fishing, I'm never fishing again!" Catelyn laughed at him, but he continued anyway "I was thinking camping, like when the kids were actually kids."

"If you want kids so badly," started Catelyn with a strange tint in her voice, "we could always have another one." she suggested and Ned looked at her, before both of them laughed.

"'Stark Super Awesome Family Trip' it is!" he said before kissing Catelyn in the forehead, "I'm leaving now."

"Okay," Catelyn whispered, but when Ned was about to close the door behind him, she called, "Oh, Ned" he turned with a questioning expression, "While having another baby is a bad idea, trying for one is not, you know?"

Ned smiled and something glinted in his eyes before replying. "Get all the kids out of the house tonight and is a plan." he said before closing the door, leaving a laughing Catelyn.

.x.

If Eddard Stark was grateful for anything since having to work on Friday, was that it now no longer meant someone at the office playing that god-awful song.

That 'Friday' song.

The worst was when the funny guy of the week had been Jory Cassel, the same man Ned had asked to help him strop the atrocity.

_Thanks the Old Gods those days are gone._

Now Friday afternoons simply meant waiting to go home to his family and rest.

Except today, today his plans were to go home to his wife, only his wife.

Ned leant back on his chair, closed his eyes, and rests for a minute, before he heard someone knocking his door.

"Come in."

Jory Cassel had a bunch of papers on his arm and Ned sighs.

"Tired?" asked Jory casually.

"It's not that," Ned said, "I've just been sitting here, casually wondering if chaining the girls to their bedrooms is too medieval."

Jory laughed, "What happened? Arya started dating?"

"No," Ned massaged his brow, "but Sansa is having an interview at King's Landing University."

Jory chuckled and sat in the chair in front of Ned's desk, "I thought that she had been avoiding boys since her break with Joffrey."

"Yes, but it won't last. By the first week in college she will be gushing over a new guy. I mean, it's a good thing, I don't want a bad experience with Joffrey stopping her life."

"But?"

"But I would like him to be a good, hard-working, responsible guy this time."

"So the exact opposite from Joffrey?"

"Exactly," Ned stated with a smile. His phone started buzzing and he took a quick look at the screen, "Perfect timing."

" _Dad!"_ Sansa's exited voice sounded from the other end of the line _"Dad, I already finished my interview and I'm pretty sure it ended up pretty great."_ she started saying and Ned felt like she was about to ask something from him.

"Really? That's fantastic!" Ned said trying to act excited while having the mental image of her daughter in a boat, floating away from him in a very dramatic way.

Jory seemed to notice that.

_"So, I was thinking maybe making a little tour, you know? To see the campus and maybe meet some people and whatnot?"_

"Sure, sweetie.Are you coming back early?"

_"No, then I'm going to party with Jeyne, mom said it was okay."_

"Okay then." _one kid less and three to go._

" _Bye, dad."_

"Bye, Sansa. See you later."

Ned gave Jory a pointed look, "I guess I change what I just said, and she probably already met someone new. That's it! I'm chaining them to their rooms like in the old times."

Jory laughed, hard. "I never knew this over protective side of you!"

"I am not overprotective, I am practical."

"Well, this was a lovely chat, but that I have a lot to do," said Jory, leaving the pile of papers on his desk, "I will leave this for you."

"Is this urgent?"

"No."

"So it will have to wait until Monday."

"Heading home early?"

"The Mrs. and I have dinner plans." Ned smiled.

Jory chuckled and wished him a good weekend.

And Ned Stark headed home.


End file.
